One of the most important aspects of health care information technology is gathering data from patients who are willing to share their clinical information with providers. Reporting these findings aids decision making for radiologists, referring doctors and other physicians involved in the continuum of care.
The data can be crucial, but without the consent of individuals, it cannot be accessed. New research gathered from a Truven Health Analytics-NPR Health Poll indicated that the majority of patients would be willing to share medical information with researchers, health plans and their doctors, FierceHealthIT reported.
Information sharing can improve care quality
More than 3,000 people submitted replies to the poll, which covered issues such as data privacy concerns and electronic health records. Roughly 68 percent of respondents said they would be O.K. with anonymous information sharing with clinical researchers to further improve potential therapies and treatments.
The Truven authors explained that rising levels of education and income caused the propensity of sharing to increase, and Millennials were the most likely group to share information at roughly 70 percent. However, 14 percent of all the survey's participants replied that they were concerned about the privacy of EHR software used by their hospitals.
Despite their security worries and the inherent risks associated with sharing health information, patients acknowledged that sending out data is important to advancing health care and medicine.
CMS creates new office for analytics
As more information is shared with providers, doctors report their own analytics to the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as part of the Meaningful Use program. To facilitate the process, CMS has created the Office of Enterprise Data and Analytics, according to EHR Intelligence.
"OEDA will help CMS better harness its vast data resources to guide decision-making and develop frameworks promoting appropriate external access to and use of data to drive higher quality, patient-centered care at a lower cost," the agency explained in an announcement.
Because it operates as the center of health care reform, CMS is stocked with data that covers the continuum of care and makes the agency capable of developing actionable analytics to improve the quality of clinical services. The information that will accumulate at OEDA could help provide more insight into CMS' EHR Incentive Programs and measure its overall effectiveness. With more organizations and providers lobbying for increased flexibility with Meaningful Use, hopefully the agency will grant more leniency going forward.
Contact Viztek for more information.
Ronny Bachrach
Latest posts by Ronny Bachrach (see all)
- Konica Minolta Debuts First-of-Its-Kind Digital U-Arm System at AHRA - July 27, 2016
- Researchers Detect Signs Of Stroke Risk Using MRI - June 27, 2016
- Imaging Biz: Q&A with David S. Channin MD: How to Make PACS Patient Centered - June 22, 2016
0
0
0
